Brianna Ghey's mum says 'mindfulness saved my life'

The mother of murdered teenager Brianna Ghey says "mindfulness saved her life" as she urges the government to roll out her mental wellbeing in schools campaign.

Esther Ghey said she wanted to "give the gift of mindfulness to our children" to help pupils deal with anxiety and stress.

Her campaign has already been introduced at her daughter's former school in Warrington, Cheshire.

Ms Ghey said mindfulness was "a tool in our back pockets" to be able to deal with stress and trauma as she called on Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer to support her campaign.

Ms Ghey's daughter, Brianna, was murdered in a park in Warrington in February 2023 by teenagers, Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe.

Ms Ghey said she has been practising mindfulness - a mental state achieved by focusing awareness on the present - for 10 years and the technique has helped her "build a mental strength" to deal with the loss of her daughter.

"I'm not saying grief is easy, the following months after Brianna's death it was so difficult, but having that level of mental resilience helped, even though you are in the middle of this tragedy there is still beauty in the world," Ms Ghey told BBC Breakfast.

She said: "I had this strong mind which was able to get me through that grief".

Ms Ghey said going for walks with her eldest daughter in the aftermath of Brianna's death helped them to notice "all the small things".

"Like the bird sound, the cherry blossom on the trees, the pink skies in the evening, and being able to take that time and be in the present moment really helps," she added.

She has written a letter to the Prime Minster to support her campaign which aims to introduce sessions in schools across the country.

"Whether its changing curriculum or getting it fitted into the curriculum, we need to free up time for this because it is so important," she said.

Ms Ghey said many teachers and parents outside of Warrington had been asking when the sessions could be introduced into their schools.

Emily Slater, chief executive of the Mindfulness in Schools Project, said the mindfulness sessions could be tailored to each class.

She said: "There is a need for the government to look holistically at this, teachers need to do it because they want to do it, it can help them too with reduced burnout."

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